At least a 30 million annual salary? Reports reveal Spurs want to bring in Reeves to team up with Wembanyama; Lakers' retention standards exposed

On September 18 Beijing time, Lakers reporter Anthony Irwin reported that among the key issues the Lakers must address for the new season, the long-term compatibility between Doncic and Reeves is undoubtedly paramount. It is almost certain that Reeves will decline his player option after this season, aiming to secure a contract worth approximately 30 to 35 million dollars annually.Insiders reveal that both Reeves and the Lakers hope to continue their partnership in the future, but the prerequisite is that he and Doncic must prove they can form a championship-contending duo.

To be fair and clear, Reeves has fully met all the Lakers' expectations for him. Whenever needed, he has flexibly switched roles between “primary offensive initiator/scorer,” “secondary offensive initiator/scorer,” and even “tertiary offensive initiator/scorer.” At certain stages of his career, he has also taken on the responsibility of the main ball-handling defender. Since entering the league, Reeves has steadily improved every year, and with more experience alongside Doncic, he is likely to make another leap in the upcoming season.

Although the Lakers sometimes assign Reeves excessive responsibilities, this is different from saying “Reeves is a player who cannot help the team win a championship.”

Take last season’s playoffs as an example: Reeves spent a long time defending Edwards. Although the results were not ideal, this does not necessarily reflect poorly on Reeves—even he admits he could have performed better. In fact, the Lakers lacked a more suitable option to guard Edwards, which is a much bigger issue than Reeves being unable to handle the matchup.

Even so, to perform better if the Lakers face the Timberwolves again in the future (assuming he still has to guard Edwards),sources reveal that Reeves focused on improving his physical strength this summer.Ideally, Reeves should no longer be the first choice to defend Edwards—especially after Smart joined the team—but he understands opponents will continue to target him defensively, so he has prepared in advance for these challenges.

If Reeves can improve on defense, he and Doncic could become the core pillars for the Lakers. However, it must be clear that to cover their defensive weaknesses, they must demonstrate overwhelming offensive strength.

On offense, according to internal Lakers sources, Reeves concentrated on refining his catch-and-shoot and catch-and-drive abilities this summer.This does not mean he has completely neglected ball-handling or creating opportunities for teammates, but playing alongside Doncic and James, he knows he must produce efficiently within limited offensive windows.

One notable aspect for the new season is Reeves’ shooting release speed. In recent years, he has worked on speeding up his shot release, but in the last two playoff series, his three-point shooting percentage noticeably declined. Although his career playoff three-point percentage remains at 38%, these drops might be anomalies, but the Lakers cannot tolerate this trend continuing.

The Lakers hope to see another positive trend continue—that Reeves’ free throw attempts maintain last year’s upward momentum.Two seasons ago, Reeves averaged only 3.3 free throw attempts per game, down from 4.1 in the 2022-23 season (despite playing more minutes that year); last year, this number rose back to 5.0 attempts per game. Ideally, this figure should continue to climb in the new season.

Currently, Doncic has signed a maximum contract extension with the team.Insiders have also confirmed earlier reports that Reeves rejected a Lakers extension offer because the team could only offer a 4-year, $89.2 million deal at most.If Reeves ultimately opts out of his current contract, he will become an unrestricted free agent, inevitably attracting interest from multiple teams.League sources reveal that the Spurs and several other teams are closely monitoring Reeves’ free agency status. The Spurs want to acquire Reeves to pair with Wembanyama.

Considering the Lakers may risk “losing Reeves for nothing,” theywould be justified in considering trading Reeves at some point this season—especially if the athletic limitations of Doncic and Reeves clearly hinder the team’s championship aspirations.

This summer, the Lakers quickly ended all trade talks involving Reeves, clearly stating they would only consider trading him as part of a package to acquire a true superstar. However, this will not stop other teams from exploring trade possibilities involving Reeves in the new season; if doubts about the “compatibility between Doncic and Reeves” persist, the Lakers will have to take these trade inquiries more seriously.

Nevertheless, the Lakers’ primary goal and expectation remain to establish Doncic and Reeves as a reliable core duo for the future. They have affirmed Doncic’s value with a max contract, and if the two mesh well in the new season, the team also hopes to secure Reeves with a lucrative extension.